Aside
by BlueBanshee
Summary: Clint and Natasha have hidden their feelings for each other for years. But when she's away on a long mission, Clint feels like Natasha's never going to admit how she feels, and he gets a girlfriend who is everything Natasha will never be. Shocked, Natasha enlists Bruce's help to make Clint wake up and realize that she's the one he's always wanted.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey everyone, I want to let you all know that this story has nothing to do with 'June Air'. It's a totally separate story line that I thought I would try out.**

**If you haven't yet, go check out my other story as mentioned above. I try to update that one every few days when I can, and with school starting soon, this one will most likely be updated every week.**

**Shout out to mt friend who previewed this story and plot before anyone else, she knows she's super cool.**

**I don't own Marvel or any of their trademarks.**

**Enjoy!**

As Natasha traveled up the elevator to her apartment in Stark tower, she realized that it had never felt so good to be home. She just returned home from a shitty mission and wanted nothing more than a hot shower. Her mission was deep undercover and she wanted to get back to feeling like herself again.

She had been injured over the course of the mission, a bullet to the thigh and a knife wound in her stomach, and by the time the evac team got there she had already passed out from blood loss. It was a serious injury, yet it was expected from a deep cover mission, many agents come back much worse, or even not at all. Natasha got lucky this time.

It was not surprising for Natasha to wake up in SHIELD's medical ward, but it was surprising that Clint was not there when she woke up, or even on base for that matter.

Natasha considered Clint her best friend, and the person she could trust the most out of anybody. She trusted him to be her partner on a mission, keep her demons secret, and to always have her back, no matter what. She had expected him to be there.

The day she left, 4 months ago, was tougher than it usually was. Natasha had woken up at 3am, having said goodbye to the team the previous night, she got dressed in her business attire that her 'employer' would expect. Having shared the bed with Clint the night before to keep her nightmares away, he got up as well, helping her double check all her equipment and supplies.

They shared a rare hug, and she could've sworn she saw something in his stormy grey eyes when he told her to come back alive. Then she was off.

For years, Natasha buried her feeling for Clint out of fear, and that day she had almost let it out and told him everything. But she didn't.

Natasha arrived at her floor and headed for the shower. Stripping down, she peeled off her skin-tight cat suit and put the water on the hottest setting.

* * *

When Natasha got out of the shower she was feeling much more like herself and much more relaxed. Stark tower was one of the few places she felt a shred of safety.

She still slept with a gun, and every floor was stocked with hidden weapons in case of an emergency but she didn't have to worry about someone killing her while she slept.

Natasha made herself a cup of tea and began reading through the papers, trying to catch up on the last few months that she's been gone. If it wasn't midnight, she would go visit with the team and catch up, but right now the only ones up would be Bruce and maybe Tony but she didn't want to interrupt any of their research.

Natasha finally decided to head to bed around 1am when she was satisfied that she was sufficiently caught up.

It wasn't the first night that Natasha dreamt of her past horrors and woke up screaming, but it was the first night in 2 years that Clint wasn't there with her.

* * *

Clint has been Natasha's partner for 4 years and her best friend for 3. It was obvious that both of them felt something more than friendship towards each other, but Natasha refused to let someone close to her in that way because she refused to make herself vulnerable.

So instead of acknowledging her feelings, Natasha just pushed it all down while telling herself that she couldn't be compromised. She knew Clint felt similarly towards her, she could see it in his eyes almost all the time.

By the time Natasha woke up, it was 9am and she was starving for breakfast so she threw on one of Clint's old t-shirts, pulled on some black athletic shorts, and headed for the team's communal level.

Almost as soon as the elevator door opened, she was grabbed and pulled into a bone crushing hug by Thor.

"Lady Natasha! It is good to see you well after your mission. Our director told us it was dangerous, was it not?" Thor boomed while he was mid-hug. Once he put her down she was able to reply.

"Yeah, it was difficult, but I managed alright."

Bruce was the next one to greet her, leaving his spot from the kitchen table to make his way over. "Good to see you in one piece, Natasha. Fury told you that I'm monitoring your stitches, right?"

"He did, thanks, Bruce." She replied while hugging him lightly. Bruce had become the team's stand in doctor. If they were injured seriously enough they would be transported to a SHIELD base or hospital and then monitored by Bruce once released. Everyone preferred to be at the tower recovering as opposed to a medical wing.

Steve waved from where he was making pancakes in the kitchen so she headed over to him. While walking she scanned the floor quickly to see if anyone else was around. Tony and Pepper weren't there which wasn't unusual.

Tony rarely got up before 9 and Pepper was almost always busy running Stark Industries. What really confused her was why Clint wasn't there. Usually the two of them would have an early workout in the gym and make it back up in time for breakfast with the team.

"JARVIS, where are Tony, Pepper, and Clint?" She requested.

"Currently Ms. Potts and Mr. Stark are on their floor in what appears to be a heated debate while Agent Barton is not in the tower at the moment." The AI responded back.

"Thanks, JARVIS"

"You are welcome Agent Romanoff." Natasha grabbed a chocolate chip pancake off the top of the stack that Steve was making and rolled it up. She wondered where Clint was, slightly annoyed he wasn't there when she got home to New York.

"How've you been Steve?" She asked before taking a bite out of her pancake roll. She and Steve had become close since the battle of New York. He was a great sparring and training partner who always offered a challenge.

Steve was a natural leader for the team; he fit so easily into the role it was like he was born for it. He and Tony still bickered all the time, but it was nothing like when Clint and Tony went at it, and Steve was like a brother to Natasha.

"I've been good, been catching up on my sketches lately." He told her as he flipped another pancake off the pan and into the stack. Natasha was happy that Steve was able to find time to draw, he was really good and in another life, he could've been an artist.

"Look, Pep, Stalin's home." Tony shouted from where the elevator doors just opened. Pepper was not amused with Tony's antics in the slightest.

"Tony, will you _please_ keep your voice down? It is way too early for that, even in your book. By the way, it is lovely to see you home safe, Natasha."

"Thanks, Pepper, I see that Stark and Banner have avoided completely destroying the tower while I was gone." Natasha told Pepper. Natasha has never really had any good female friends. There was Hill and a few other female Agents that she got along fine with, but they were always associated with work; Pepper was just…Pepper. She kept Stark industries incredibly well managed and was also an acting handler for the team.

Fury decided that with so many of them in one group, more than one handler would be helpful, especially with the chaos that always seems to follow them around.

"Speaking of destroying things, Brucie and I have some new prototypes for you to try down in the lab later; but now I think it's time for a drink." Tony announced whilst pouring himself a drink. After his drink was poured, Tony proceeded to pour Natasha a shot of the Russian vodka that he imported just for her.

"Isn't it a little early for drinking, Stark?" Steve inquired. He was still getting used to life in the 21st century, and the amount people drank, and the occasions people drank for were much different.

"It's 5pm somewhere, Capsicle." Tony shot back, somewhat defensively.

"I second Stark on that one, I do need a drink." Natasha told them both as she walked over to the bar and shot down the vodka in one quick swallow, loving how it barely burnt on the way down. "I also need to go for a run, anyone else in?" She asked the group.

Natasha had expected Steve to volunteer since aside from Clint, he's the one who trains with her the most. Surprisingly, it was Bruce who volunteered.

"I'll go, Natasha, just give me five minutes and I'll meet you in the gym." Natasha nodded and then returned to her floor to get ready.

* * *

Clad in running shorts, a sports tank top, and running shoes, Natasha arrived at the largest gym the tower housed. It had various sports equipment, a sparring ring, and an indoor track.

Not long after she got there, Bruce showed up in athletic shorts and a tee shirt. He usually took it easy exercising in order to keep his heart rate and the other guy down. One wrong move in a sparring match could level the entire tower.

They started off at a light jog, making small talk about the team, her mission, how her stitches felt, and him and Tony's new experiments. From the sounds of it, they had some pretty awesome new stuff for her to test out.

Part of the reason they had her test a lot of stuff was not only because of her versatility in weapons and ammunition, but also because she was one of the few people with the guts to trust half of the crazy shit they invented. Clint too would often test out new arrowheads and other various pieces equipment when needed.

It took a while for her to gather enough courage to ask about what's been bugging her since she arrived back on the Helicarrier.

"So I haven't seen Clint around, what's up with him?" Natasha asked, trying to mask the emotion in her voice. She's sure Bruce heard it anyways. She and Bruce had always had a comfortable relationship with each other. They could sit in silence while reading or drinking tea together and be perfectly comfortable in the silence without feeling the need to fill it with empty conversation.

"I haven't seen Clint in the last two days, but I could tell he missed you. For about a month after you left, he just spend his time trying to occupy himself by pranking everyone in the tower and trying to piss off Stark. After he convinced Thor that fairies were after him, Pepper put a quick end to that nonsense. Tony took him to a few clubs… of many kinds," Bruce added with a look that told Natasha just what types of clubs they were in "but from what I hear, he wasn't very interested in anyone there and never brought anyone home."

"And now?" She no longer tried to hide anything in her voice. Bruce knew how deep Clint and Natasha's bond was. He saw it each time one or both of them were injured and the other refused to leave the side of whichever one of them was hurt. If both were hurt, he saw how they needed to recover together, as a team.

He could see the concern in Natasha's eyes when she asked about him a minute ago. Bruce could even see what both assassins refused to admit to themselves, and everyone else.

"From what I understand, Clint is doing fine. I haven't seen him in about two days now, but that hasn't been unusual lately." There was something in his eyes as he told her that, but Natasha forced herself not to think about it too much. She simply nodded.

"When would be a good time to test out the stuff that you and Tony built? I'm free whenever as long as a mission doesn't come up unexpectedly." As she said that, Bruce began to get excited. Tony must be rubbing off on him more than she originally thought.

"How about later on after dinner. That's when Clint is scheduled to come in too and since a lot of the items are partnered together it would be better if you were the other half as opposed to me. There was a…almost incident with the other guy last time." Natasha just smirked, knowing how nonchalant Stark is about Bruce's condition.

"Sounds like a plan."

* * *

After their run, Natasha headed down to the pool to work out the stress in her shoulders by swimming laps. Eventually she was joined by Steve and they ended up racing across the pool multiple times until both were exhausted and hungry for the early dinner that Pepper had planned.

Natasha showered in the locker room that was housed in the gym and she made it upstairs 30 minutes later. To busy herself, she helped Pepper chop the vegetables needed for the pot roast dinner and later mashed the potatoes. She would have helped with the beef, but Natasha wasn't skilled at finding the right temperature and time to cook meat for. Clint was though; he always cooked for both of them during missions, and even at home in the tower. She often ended up on his floor for meals that weren't a team event.

As soon as the food was done, Pepper had JARVIS tell the team and within minutes, almost everyone was in the kitchen getting food. Bruce and Stark grabbed theirs to go, claiming they needed to get ready for the testing taking place later that night.

As everyone else was sitting down ready to eat, the elevator doors opened to reveal Clint. His grey eyes fell right on Natasha and he smiled.

"Hey, Tasha, I'm glad you're home." Natasha wished she wasn't as upset as she was that he only now decided to show up. He has never missed a day when she got home from a mission barring unforeseen complications like a mission or an injury.

Clint greeted the rest of the team and sat down next to Thor and across from Natasha to eat.

Once they were both done with dinner, Clint and Natasha rode down to the lab in silence. Something was different in the way he looked at her now. She couldn't put her finger on what it was exactly since it wasn't good or bad, more like…apprehension almost?

She let it go, knowing he would tell her whenever he was ready.

Almost the second the doors opened to reveal the "destruction prepared lab", Stark was all over the place, talking excitedly and gesturing wildly.

"Stark, calm down before you pop a blood vessel, now what's first?" Natasha asked in slight irritation. The last thing she wanted around potentially unstable equipment was an excited Stark.

He grinned evilly while Bruce just sighed in the background.

* * *

The two assassins both left the lab in one piece miraculously. Most of the stuff was really cool and would work great, but there were a few items that needed more work.

They worked together flawlessly just like they always have, moving as one and getting everything tested within the hour.

"Agent Barton, there is a guest in the lobby for you." JARVIS came over the speakers.

"I'll be right down, have the team meet on the group level please, JARVIS." Clint requested. Before Natasha could ask what he had planned, the doors opened at the groups floor and she got out of the elevator, deciding that if Clint wasn't going to tell her what was going on, she didn't care.

Steve showed up around the same time, coming from the gym.

"Why does Clint need us here?" He asked Natasha in slight confusion. Usually it was Steve, Stark, or Pepper who called the group together.

Natasha just shrugged in reply. That was when she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket, letting her know she had a text coming through.

It was from Bruce. '_Natasha, there's something I need to tell you._' While she was in mid-reply, Thor and Pepper got out of the elevator, followed by Stark. Natasha finished sending the message, asking Bruce what was it that he needed to tell her.

They all waited for Clint to come back up while sitting on the couches that surrounded a huge flat screen TV that Fury occasionally buzzed into to brief the entire team at once in an emergency.

The doors opened and Clint stepped out with a goofy smile on his face. The sight made the sides of Natasha's mouth curl into a small smile.

"So it's been about three weeks and I thought that it was about time I introduced you guys to Angelina, my girlfriend." Natasha's mind was still processing the word 'girlfriend' when said woman stepped off the elevator.

The first thing Natasha noticed were her long tanned legs clad in white short-shorts and her thighs that were so skinny, they didn't touch. Her waist was miniscule and her boobs had to be at least D's. The woman's hair was waist length and perfectly straight, not to mention that her face was beautiful too. She even had a light sprinkling of freckles across her nose and under her cheeks. Her red lips and professional looking makeup'ed blue eyes were gorgeous and left Natasha feeling not so great about herself.

Natasha pulled herself together before anyone else processed what was going on and stood up, politely greeting Angelina before making up a bull shit excuse for needing to leave.

Clint was too busy showing his perfect bimbo off that he couldn't even see through her half-assed excuse and the fiery anger burning in her eyes underneath the smile.

* * *

Natasha made it to her floor before instructing JARVIS to lock in down and sliding down against a wall next to the elevator.

Her phone buzzed from Bruce calling her several times in a row, but she just ignored it, lost in her thoughts.

Natasha didn't have perfect long legs and skinny thighs that didn't touch. Hers were muscular from the intense training she went through and from the amount of protein she needed per day after training.

Because of her fair porcelain Russian skin, Natasha would never be able to get as tan as Angelina who, Natasha guessed, had some sort of Hispanic heritage.

Her hair would never be naturally straight and she would never have sky blue eyes and the freckles that so many people found attractive.

She was everything that Natasha was never going to be.

The thought brought Natasha to tears. She's glad she never told him how she felt before her mission since he obviously didn't feel the same way.

"Agent Romanoff, Ms. Potts has told me to warn you that if you didn't let her in, she would override my systems and force her way in. She has also asked me to add that Mr. Stark is not with her at the moment." JARVIS came over the intercom suddenly.

"Fine, let her in, but no one else, JARVIS!" Natasha yelled, still against the wall. She didn't care if Pepper saw her like this anymore. The women were close enough that Natasha trusted her to keep her mouth shut and not tell Stark or anyone else what she told her.

"Oh, Nat." Pepper said as she came bursting onto the floor and settling down next to Natasha. The other woman pulled her into a hug and Natasha did nothing to stop the stream of tears pouring down her face.

Pepper knew what was going on. She could see how much Natasha loved Clint, even if the assassin hated herself for feeling it. Pepper had thought that Clint had felt the same way too, and the fact that he brought the other woman home came as a shock to her as well.

"I know it doesn't make you feel better, but I don't like her either." Pepper told the assassin.

"Thanks, Pep, I know Stark probably isn't making this any easier on you either." Pepper just nodded, Natasha was right. Tony's comments to and about Angelina were absolutely inappropriate and it pissed Pepper off.

"Hey, Nat, don't give up on Clint. I could always see how he looked at you, and he doesn't look at her that way."

* * *

About an hour after talking to Pepper, Natasha pulled herself together and made her way down to the lab, checking beforehand to make sure Stark wasn't down there.

She walked along the hallway until she found Bruce's personal lab. Natasha knocked twice before she turned the handle and stepped inside.

"Bruce, I need your help."

**So what do you guys think of the story line so far?**

**What do you think she's going to ask Bruce to do?**

**Let me know and leave me a review!**

**Thanks!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N Hey guys**

**This chapter was so fun to wrote, I actually like writing this story better than 'June Air', I just like writing the team I guess**

**Thank you so much for favoriting and following this story, you guys rock**

**Those of you who reviewed deserve a thousand hugs over and over again.**

**I wanted to let everyone know that this is not and will not be a Brutasha fic, Bruce is strictly Natasha's friend who's helping her out**

**I don't own Marvel or any of their trademarks**

**Enjoy!**

"Natasha, I don't know how comfortable I am with this…" Bruce stated nervously.

"It will be fine, just follow my lead." Before he could back out, Natasha put her plan into action. "Oh, JARVIS? Where is Clint?"

"He is currently on the communal level with Ms. Potts, Mr. Stark, the Capsicle and Hammertime." The AI responded immediately, using the nicknames for Thor and Steve that Stark had demanded. It appeared that Angelina had gone home which just added the icing to the cake.

"Perfect, I want you to delete the conversation Bruce and I just had from your hard drive, and then I would like you to alert Stark that Bruce's heart rate is accelerating and that it appears I am trapped in the lab with him." Upon hearing Natasha's plan, Bruce paled.

He didn't like this plan one bit.

* * *

On the communal level, Tony was avidly explaining to the team a new upgrade he built for his suit when JARVIS spoke.

"Mr. Stark, it appears that Dr. Banner's heart rate is accelerating at an alarming rate." Tony wasn't worried though, he had Bruce's lab Hulk-reinforced for a reason.

"Just shut it down until he calms down, you know the drill, J." Stark ordered, wanting to get back to his conversation.

"Sir, I would, but it seems that Agent Romanoff is down there as well and is not helping to diffuse the situation." At that, the entire team shot up from their seats and raced towards the lab with Clint leading.

* * *

Back in the lab, Natasha was putting the finishing touches on both she and Bruce's appearances.

"I can ruffle my own hair, Natasha!" He said, irritated. "It's not like I don't know what sex hair looks like!" She only raised an eyebrow in response before locking the door.

Natasha wiped some of her lipstick off and smeared it on Bruce's collar, lips, and neck before flipping her own hair over and shaking it up.

That was when the banging on the door started.

"Bruce, open the door!"

"Nat, are you okay in there?"

"Just breathe, Banner, don't do something you'll regret!" And then the reaction she hoped for,

"TASHA!" Clint roared a second before there was a loud thud on the door, which Natasha could only assume was him throwing his body into it in an attempt to get in.

"JARVIS, UNLOCK THE DOOR RIGHT NOW!" Steve practically screamed, not ready to have another incident on the team between the Hulk and Natasha.

"I am sorry, but Agent Romanoff has instructed me not to unlock this door." That made the team pause before more chaos erupted.

"Natasha, do not induce the Hulk!"

"Lady Natasha, did this not go badly the last time you and the Hulk were together?"

"TASH, DON'T BE FUCKING STUPID."

"J, OVERRIDE CODE ALPHA EIGHT GAMMA" Tony shouted, and the second they heard the click of the lock springing open, everyone stormed in to find Natasha against a wall, straddling Bruce, their faces glued together.

Resisting the urge to smirk at everyone's faces, Natasha pulled her head away from Bruce who had a bewildered expression that was thankfully hidden from everyone.

"JARVIS, I thought I told you to keep that door locked?"

"My apologies, Agent Romanoff, I do believe they were worried enough to override my systems." She didn't bother responding, just simply taking in the teams reactions. Pepper was behind the whole group with the biggest shit eating grin Natasha has ever seen the CEO wear.

Steve was as red as a tomato, looking incredibly embarrassed and repeatedly opening and closing his mouth, probably trying to find an excuse to leave as quickly and as politely as possible.

Thor had burst in the lab, hammer raised, expecting to need to defend Natasha from the Hulk. Now he just stared at the pair in confusion.

"Is the monster not present here?" He asked in such a confused tone that Natasha had to keep herself from laughing. "Why would we interrupt their 'sexy times' as Tony has explained before?" As if taking a cue, Stark opened his mouth and added his two cents into the mix.

"Wow, Brucie! You didn't tell me that you and little Red over here were shacking up!"

"THEY AREN'T SHACKING UP, STARK!" Clint finally cracked.

"Then what did we walk in on, Legolas?" Stark demanded.

"I don't know…" Clint's voice cracked at the end, looking to his fellow embarrassed teammates for some sort of explanation, but didn't receive any.

_BANG_

The gunshot rang through the lab, startling everyone present. Natasha had gotten sick of the discussion and just wanted them to shut up.

"LISTEN. You all have a choice right now. You can leave in silence, or remain in silence, but you will all shut your damn mouths, understood?" She told them, throwing in a glare and waving her gun towards them for good measure. "And option two is not available to you, Stark!"

Luckily, he didn't get to put up any argument because Pepper grabbed him by the back of the shirt and promptly dragged him away from the lab, muttering about leaving them alone.

Steve practically ran out of the room after Tony and Pepper, simply glad to leave the room. Thor followed at a more normal pace, calling after Steve and asking to spar.

The only one left was Clint, meaning that it was time to put on a show. Natasha hopped down from Bruce's waist and marched over towards Clint, not bothering to fix her shirt, knowing that almost her entire bra was showing.

"Well?" She demanded, planting her hands on her hips.

"What the hell, Natasha?" Clint ground out. She leveled her gun at his crotch, knowing that it would get her point across loud and clear.

"What's it going to be, Clint? Better choose fast, otherwise Angelina won't have much to work with." He narrowed his eyes before giving up and turning to leave.

"Lock the door behind you; we don't want any more interruptions tonight." He turned as she spoke, only to see Natasha completely remove her shirt and reconnect her body to Banner's.

He stormed out, slamming the door as he left.

Once the door was locked again, Natasha told JARVIS not to let Stark see any footage from the lab, knowing it would help stir the pot and then put her shirt back on.

Bruce stood on, red faced; waiting for some sort of explanation for the last part of Natasha's little show.

"Natasha, I don't want Clint trying to kill me; it won't end well for anyone involved." He broke the silence that had settled over them first. "And next time, I'd like a little warning before you strip down and straddle me."

"Thanks, Bruce; I really do appreciate your help." She told him quietly.

"Do you think it helped at all?" He asked just as quiet as she had previously.

"I don't know. His reaction made me think he cared, but I don't know if it will be enough since he has perfect little Angelina." She told Bruce, staring at the ground while she spoke.

"Well, I don't think she's anything all that special. Anyone can find a pretty girl on the street." He told her honestly. And it was true. Beautiful women were everywhere, but very few stood out from the rest.

"He obviously likes her. Or at least likes the idea of having a semi-normal relationship" Natasha told him somewhat bitterly at first until realization dawned on her.

When he saw the look in her eyes, Banner gulped.

"Natasha…."

"Congratulations Bruce, You're in a relationship."

* * *

**Meanwhile upstairs….**

Clint Barton was _pissed, _andhe wasn't doing anything to hide it. His partner was absolutely _unbelievable_. For four years, she acted like she had no interest in any guy who approached her. For two and a half years, he could see her purposely avoiding romantic interests with him specifically, always shutting down and any mention of feelings.

And then suddenly she decides to start shagging up with Bruce _the motherfucking Hulk_ Banner. Like what the hell?

He knew she had feelings for him, but when she refused to acknowledge them for so long, he grew tired of pursuing someone who would never want him back.

Before she had left on her mission, he almost told her the truth, which was that he loved her and wanted them to be something more, but at the last minute, he chickened out, preferring to have her as his best friend only as opposed to chasing her away possibly forever.

Sometime later, he met Angelina, and accepted that while he would always love his Tasha, he deserved to have someone in his life who wanted him to love them.

Now that she decided she was ready to grow up and accept that she has feelings, she went for Banner.

He kept asking himself why she decided to allow feelings for Banner and not for him. Was he not good enough?

Clint also couldn't help wishing that it was his waist that her incredible legs were wrapped around, instead of Bruce.

In frustration he slammed his fist through the wall, coincidentally right next to Stark's head.

Needless to say, Stark wasn't pleased.

"Calm down, Katniss! Oh, and your sorry ass is going to be fixing my wall." In response, Clint sent Stark a threatening glare that rivaled Natasha's.

"Shut up, Stark, just shut the hell up!" Clint yelled before storming off to his floor.

* * *

The next morning, Natasha was in the team's gym early, working on her gymnastic and acrobatic moves by flying across the many bars, rings, and platforms that were attached to the back wall.

Gradually, the team trickled in to begin their own morning workouts, none mentioning the incident last night.

When Bruce walked in, Natasha flipped down from the bar and walked over to him and planting a kiss on his cheek.

At that exact moment the door flew open to reveal a very determined Clint Barton. After brooding all night, he'd decided that he deserved some sort of an answer.

"Thanks for last night." She told Bruce just loud enough for the team to hear while throwing a flirty smile on her face. While Stark whistled and Steve's face turned red, that was Barton's breaking point.

He stormed over to Natasha and pushed her against the wall, making her hit her head and causing the rest of the Avengers to stop what they were doing previously and slowly make their way over to the two assassins.

Holding her in place with his arms and body, Natasha couldn't break away.

"Ow, Clint, what the hell?!" Her head hurt and she was in no mood to deal with his shit.

"I should be asking you the same question!" He hissed right back.

"If I want a relationship with one of my own team members, I will damn well have a relationship, unless there's some rule about you being allowed to have one and I can't?! And goddamn it, stop squeezing my arms, it hurts!" Natasha spat back to him, but it was like he didn't hear a word she said. "Clint, let go of me!"

Then without warning, the Hulk surged forward and roughly pushed Clint away from where he was holding Natasha against the wall. The force of the push forced Clint back about ten feet and caused him to land on his ass.

Steve moved over towards where Natasha had slumped down against the wall while holding his hands up, showing Hulk that he meant no harm.

"Nat, are you alright?" She nodded weakly but there was a fire in her eyes that suggested there would be hell to pay for a certain archer.

When Clint stood up and made like he was going back towards Natasha, Hulk stepped forwards and roared right in Clint's face, making it clear that he was to go no further.

While everyone other than Steve was watching the monster and the archer face off, Natasha was getting to her feet, determined to put an end to the nonsense.

"Stark, tranquilize him now!" She ordered while walking over towards the two _idiots_ she had to deal with.

"Enough!" She shouted, putting a hand on Clint's chest and forcing him back. "You want to fight someone? Fight me." He just glared at her and moved his eyes back up towards Hulk who was angrily pounding his fists together and inching closer. "Fight me! Fight me, you bastard!" She screamed, aiming a punch towards his face.

He immediately deflected her fist and went on the offense.

In the background, there was a rapidly shrinking Hulk that was looking more and more like Bruce. Stark was ushering him out, trying to get him up to the lab where he had a serum to strengthen Bruce back after the tranquilizer shut him down.

The two Agents were a blur of motion, attacking and blocking rapidly. Usually when they fought or sparred, there was no real anger behind it; it was all just for training and for fun.

Natasha went into a high kick, aiming for the side of Clint's head, but he caught her leg and used her momentum to throw it higher than she intended. She had anticipated his move and while he was pushing her leg up, she flung the other one forward and around his waist.

She twisted, forcing him to turn around; she flipped off his body in one second and was back on top of his back the next.

Natasha wrapped her thighs around his shoulders and hung upside down, planning to end up on top after her move that would cause him to flip over backwards.

What happened next was something neither of them, or anyone else in the room would have expected.

During their fight, both assassins were so focused on each other that they failed to see a small puddle of water from a leak in a water bottle until it was too late.

Clint stepped backwards into the water right as Natasha began pulling on his back. He went to flip, but because his right foot had no purchase on the mat, he slipped, causing them both to only flip a quarter of the way over.

Since Natasha was hanging upside down from his shoulders, when he fell, he landed on top of Natasha whose head hit the ground with a loud thud.

He immediately got off of her, but the damage had been done.

Natasha was unconscious and she had several relatively deep cuts on her stomach where equipment on Clint's belt caught her.

"Oh my God, _Tasha._" He whispered hoarsely. She needed medical attention and he knew that, but all Clint could do was sit there and stare at her. Even in her current state she was gorgeous.

Pepper opened the door to the gym, hoping she could calm the two fighting partners down after Tony had paged her and told her what happened. She knew that Bruce was recovering with him up in the lab, but it wasn't him she was worried about.

When she saw Natasha lying unconscious and bleeding on the floor, she let out a blood curdling scream that pierced the gym.

When it appeared that Clint wasn't going to be of much help, Steve jumped into action.

"JARVIS, tell Bruce and Stark to have the med lab ready for Natasha. Show them the video if they ask what happened, but tell them to move fast!" Steve yelled as he flew across the gym towards Natasha.

His field training from the army kicked in and he ripped off his shirt and tied it around Natasha's stomach. She was tiny enough for it to work which was what Steve had been counting on.

While Clint remained kneeling on the floor, Steve gently picked up Natasha, being careful not to move her head or neck around.

Steve ran out of the gym and up the six flights of stairs to the medical lab after coming to the conclusion that he would be faster than the elevator.

* * *

In the medical lab, Bruce was fighting to keep the Hulk down after seeing what happened. The only reason he was staying in control was because he knew that he would be no help to Natasha and no help to Tony if he hulked out.

He and Tony raced around the lab, getting everything into place and getting the proper equipment ready.

They had just finished setting up an IV when Steve burst in with Natasha in his arms.

"Set her down here, Steve lock that door and sit by it. Barton doesn't get in here under any circumstances." Bruce ordered, settling into his doctor mode; he'd be damned if Barton got in here after what happened.

At first, Bruce had felt slightly bad and really embarrassed for what happened with the Hulk, but after seeing what happened, there was no remorse for Clint Barton today.

* * *

Bruce and Tony had worked all morning and afternoon on Natasha. Around 10am, Clint showed up, pounding on the door and demanding to see his partner. He had even thrown himself against the door, which was luckily reinforced.

At that point, Tony had JARVIS lock down the air vents and refuse everyone access to the lad's video feed. They hadn't needed anymore distractions.

While they were working on Natasha, Steve had just sat by the door with his head in his hands. He was still shirtless, but during that time, his shirt was the farthest thing from his mind. After seeing it covered in Natasha's blood, he didn't want it back.

It was now 3pm and Natasha was stitched up and in a medically induced unconscious state, though she should be waking up soon.

"Oh JARVIS? I feel like leaving the lab without being assaulted by Katniss out there. Have Thor come down here and tell Pepper if she wants to see Natasha to come too." Tony told his AI.

"With pleasure, sir." The system answered back.

When Thor arrived, he did as Tony asked and held Barton back until Pepper was in and he was out.

"Barton, if you lay a hand on me I swear to God you will be removed from this tower!" Tony announced in the hallway. Barton slid down the wall and it was then that Tony saw just how haunted his eyes were.

"I won't." He sighed in defeat. "I just need to know how she's doing. I was such an _idiot_ and she got hurt because of it."

"Well Katniss, it's hard for me to see why you care so goddamn much about who she dates. You went and got a girlfriend after 3 and a half years of wanting Nat, don't give me that look, you two made it painfully obvious, and now you expect Natasha to not find someone and be happy as well? It's not like Bruce is some awful guy who doesn't care about her." Stark told him, wondering how someone so smart could act so stupid.

"I know. I know that I shouldn't care anymore but I still do and then I lost it and I just don't know anymore. God I wish Coulson was here." Barton told Stark honestly.

"Well if it helps, Nat's going to be okay. She's got a concussion, but it should heal in about 3 days with her advanced healing. The cuts on her stomach should heal fully in about a week."

Clint sighed in relief, happy that she was going to be fine. He felt his phone start ringing and picked up without looking at the caller ID.

He found a very irritated voice on the other end.

"Shit, I'm so sorry, Angel…..no, I do still want to go out…I'll make it up to you I swear…alright, see you at 5." Clint hung up to see Stark walking away shaking his head.

* * *

Natasha felt herself returning to consciousness and with it came sharp, shooting pains in her head and on her stomach. She was trying to block out the pain and remember what happened when it all came back to her.

"_Shit._" She said as she woke up fully and opened her eyes. She found Pepper sitting next to her and Bruce at the foot of the bed.

"Oh, Tash." Pepper cried as she wrapped the now sitting red-head into a hug. It sent pain to Natasha's stitches but she hid it, knowing that Pepper didn't mean to make it hurt.

"I'm alright, I've got some ass to kick, but I'll be fine." Natasha said, pulling out her IV which made Bruce roll his eyes. He hadn't expected anything different, but he wished she would ask before removing medical equipment that might have been necessary.

"Natasha, you've got a concussion and plenty of stitches. That's not 'fine' that's bad." Bruce told her in an unamused tone.

"I've had worse; you know that Bruce, you've seen my file I'm sure." The doctor ducked his head at that last comment.

"That was only after Fury assigned me to take care of minor medical issues for the team. I needed to make sure that there wasn't anything I would need to know in an emergency." He told her, trying to avoid her rage and wrath of his intrusion in her life.

"I understand, Bruce. Better you than Stark." She sighed. She was still pissed about what happened in the gym. He had no right to act like that. "Wait, how did I get up here?" Last she checked this lab was 6 floors higher than the team gym.

"Hey Tash." She heard Steve say from behind Bruce, by the door. He was sitting with his head in his hands.

"Steve carried you after attempting to stop the bleeding on your stomach, lucky he did too, if he hadn't you would have been unconscious a whole lot longer and the damage would've taken a lot longer to heal."

"Come here Steve." She requested and Pepper moved to talk to Bruce about something.

He came over to where Pepper used to be and avoided eye contact. Natasha was having none of that so she grabbed his face and forced him to look her in the eye.

"Thank you." Against her usual nature, she pulled Steve into a hug. She realized that in the 6 months she's lived in Stark tower, the Captain has never seen her injured and unconscious.

Since the two of them had grown so close, she wasn't surprised at his reaction. After a few minutes of silence, she told him to go eat and shower before promising him the first spar once she was healed.

As soon as he was gone and the door was shut, Natasha turned to Bruce and Pepper.

"So Pepper, I'm assuming you've figured it out?"

"Yes, I have, and I also have an idea." Natasha raised an eyebrow and Pepper continued. "Triple date."

Natasha smiled a wicked grin.

Bruce gulped.

**Well? How do you think that dinner will go?**

**How will the assassins next meeting go? What about Clint's date?**

**-On a side note, does anyone have a tumblr? I'll follow you if you let me know your url**

**What do you think so far? Leave me a review!**

**Thanks!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey everyone! I am so sorry that it took me this long to update this story, I wish that school didn't exist and that everyone was free to sit and write all day, but it does. Which sucks major balls. **

**Has anyone been keeping up with "Agents of SHIELD" on abc? I am already in love with it, it was SO cool to see Samuel L. Jackson guest star, and I totally ship Skye and Agent Ward, but what is Skye up to? Anyone know?**

**SUPERNATURAL SEASON 9 (SEASON _FINE_) IN LESS THAN A WEEK OMG.**

**Anyways, thank you so much to those of you who favorited/followed this story, and everyone who's taken the time to review deserves lots of love forever.**

**I do not own any of Marvel's trademarks**

**Enjoy!**

It was two weeks after the incident in the gym and Natasha was putting the finishing touches on her appearance. She and Clint hadn't spoken of more than common pleasantries since it had happened, tonight was the night of her triple date and she wanted to look perfect. Clint was going to see everything that he was missing.

With her appearance tonight, there was no doubt he most certainly would. Pepper had booked them a reservation at an incredibly fancy restaurant, and Natasha would not disappoint.

Her hair was up in an intricate up do with a few curls framing either side of her face. She had on a backless dark purple dress that was fitted all the way down to a drop waist where it then flared out before stopping mid-thigh. It was sweetheart cut, showing off her chest enough to be eye catching, yet still appropriate for a fancy setting. When she had bought the dress with Pepper, they had managed to find a pair of pumps that were the exact color of the dress and that showed off her legs beautifully.

She had various knives and a gun hidden as well, but she hoped that they could get through a dinner without needing it.

With shoes on and purse in hand, Natasha took the elevator down to the garage where she was meeting the rest of the group. When the doors opened, she could hear everyone's voices, meaning she was the last one down there.

Good, she thought. Now Natasha could make her grand entrance. Rolling her shoulders back, she walked around the corner to face the group.

She was able to take in everyone else before they noticed her. The men all had on nice suits, probably from Armani if Tony got his way. Pepper had on a dark blue v-neck cocktail dress that reached her knees while Angelina had on a one shoulder skin tight dress in baby pink that just reached past her ass. In Natasha's opinion it was tasteless and belonged in a club, not a nice restaurant.

Natasha was in the middle of some very rude thoughts towards Angelina when the group noticed her.

Everyone's gasps were audible as they took her appearance in. Pepper just smiled and led Tony towards the limo they had rented. Bruce stepped forward and offered her his arm which she gratefully took as they too walked over to the limo. Clint just stood there with his eyebrows raised. To everyone else, he just looked surprised; however, Natasha knew what he was actually thinking.

He was in utter shock. Angelina had to pull on his arm to get them moving towards the limo as well.

In the limo, Natasha and Tony broke out the liquor while Pepper started up a conversation with Bruce about some experiment he and Tony were working on.

Angelina tried to enter Pepper and Bruce's conversation, but she quickly grew bored and moved back towards Clint, sitting in his lap.

Though Angelina was literally on top of him, he couldn't take his eyes off of Natasha.

* * *

Dinner went surprisingly well without much incident. The place had managed to keep the Avenger's presence private and had them seated in a room where they wouldn't be disturbed. Tony had managed to get himself drunk by the time everyone ordered dessert so when they got back to the tower, Pepper took him up to their floor right away, considering it was already almost one in the morning.

The other four exchanged pleasantries before Angelina turned towards Clint.

"Ready to take me home? Maybe stay a while?" She asked expectantly. That was Natasha's cue to tell him the news she's been holding back all night.

"Clint, come here a moment." She told him, beckoning for him to come over. "Fury called, he wants a meeting tomorrow morning at 7." She whispered in his ear, smiling at Angelina when he walked back over to cancel their evening plans.

"Sorry, Angel, can't tonight. Tasha and I have a meeting early tomorrow at headquarters." She nodded. "Happy will take you home, just head back downstairs." Upon hearing that Clint wouldn't even be driving her home; Angelina brushed past everyone and got in the elevator.

As the doors were closing, she shot Natasha a look. It was one of pure envy.

Clint just sighed and ran his hand through his hair in frustration.

"Have fun with that one, I'm sure she'll just be a peach the next time you see her." Natasha told him.

"She used to be a communications liaison for SHIELD, she should understand this." Clint told them, trying to ignore how irritated his girlfriend was and how smug his best friend was.

"She'll get over it; night Clint, night Bruce." Natasha planted a kiss right on Bruce's cheek and sauntered to the elevator.

She missed the look of jealousy that Clint shot at Bruce.

* * *

The next morning Clint met Natasha in the garage at 6:30. She had on dark skinny jeans, a bright blue tank top, her boots, and her favorite leather jacket. It was the one he had bought her in Italy three years ago when they were on a mission, for her birthday. The thought made his heart clench when he remembered that she was with Bruce now.

They walked over to the impressive amount of motorcycles that Stark tower housed. Clint pulled out his sleek black Bugatti and began starting it up. Once he was all done he hopped on and gestured for Natasha to do the same.

JARVIS opened the door and they were off, speeding towards the New York base where a Quinjet would take them to the Helicarrier.

* * *

Clint and Natasha garnered three categories of looks as they walked through the halls of the Helicarrier. About half of the Agents and staff milling about just ignored the pair, looking up and then back to whatever they were doing. Many stared in confusion; for almost a year, Fury had briefed them at the tower meaning that very few people on the Helicarrier had seen either of them in a while.

The worst reaction to Clint and Natasha's presence was the hate directed at the archer. It was coming up on a year and a half since the Loki incident, yet there were still the friends and relatives of those who were injured or killed by Clint when he was under Loki's control who absolutely hated him for it.

Natasha sent threatening looks that promised death towards anyone who dared to openly express the third opinion. Most put their heads down and angrily walked away, the rest just sent hate at her as well for associating with Clint.

Luckily it wasn't long until they reached the director's office where Hill was waiting for them.

"Barton, Romanoff." Hill nodded towards each, sending a message to Fury that they would be waiting for him in the office. "Fury will be down here in a minute, he has to grab something on his way." With that, Agent Hill left the room and shut the door.

"What do you think he wants?"Clint asked after 5 minutes of waiting. His patience was to envy, but the fact that Fury didn't just have the meeting at the tower was disconcerting.

"Hell if I know." She replied shortly, not particularly thrilled about the early meeting with no information. As if on cue, Fury opened the door and walked in.

"Not now Barton, just listen." The director noted upon seeing the look on the archers face that just screamed '_holding back questions'. _"You both know that a week from today marks a year and a half since the battle of New York." He waited for both Agents to nod before continuing. "And a year and a half since Agent Coulson was killed in action." Both partners in front of him visibly tensed at the mention of their deceased handler. Fury didn't want to even think about how utterly compromised their little group was at the moment.

"Now I want both of you to listen to the following information without interruption, understood?" He asked, looking each of them in the eye until he was met with nods of understanding. "You should know that the following information was kept from you for safety reasons, and that it is not logged or archived in any SHIELD database." Fury paused. "The afternoon of the Helicarrier attack, Phil Coulson received severe and damaging wounds. He was still alive when I got to the detention level. After a brief interaction, and a mile of thoughts in a minute, I made a decision. That decision was to authorize an extremely experimental medical procedure in an attempt to save his life."

Fury was met with evident confusion from both Agents sitting in front of him but carried on nevertheless.

"Know that when I say experimental, I mean that the procedure hadn't even been moved into rodent trials. There was no way of knowing what would come of the results. That was the reason that we called the death technically before we knew for sure."

"You should also know that Agent Coulson survived the initial injuries. It was the aftereffects of a punctured lung and internal bleeding that put up a fight against some of the best doctors in the world." That was where Clint was done.

"We _know, _Fury. That's why there's a goddamn tombstone with his name on it!" He ground out while gripping the sides of his chair with white knuckles.

"_You will listen until I am finished, Agent Barton._" Fury spoke, and both of his best agents saw the different emotions swirling in his eyes before Fury covered it up again. There was mostly irritation, but also…regret?

"After spending two and a half weeks in an ICU, Agent Coulson was stabilized, and as soon as he was recovered enough to be transported, he was given an off the books medical leave in Tahiti." When he finished, Fury sat back and crossed his arms in front of his chest, waiting for the news to sink in.

Natasha kept her face deceptively calm and blank, inside, she was in complete disbelief. He was lying, Fury had to be lying. She had seen the footage, there was no way he could have survived injuries like that.

Clint's face immediately contorted into anger, and inside, he was _beyond pissed. _He quickly stood, reached over the desk, and grabbed the Director's shirt, hauling him to his feet and getting in his face.

"You're _lying_! He's dead, Fury, _I CARRIED THE FUCKING CASKET AND WATCHED THEM BURY PHIL!_"

Fury firmly grasped Barton's hands and ripped them away from his shirt, not feeling like being manhandled at 7am. "You carried a casket filled with bricks, Barton. They buried bricks." Though he was no longer holding onto Fury, Clint still managed to look intimidating while Natasha had risen from her chair to join at Clint's side. It was a look of unity if Fury had ever seen one.

"He would have contacted us; he would have found a way. Phil _always_ found a way." Natasha finally cut in, sick of the men's arguing.

"Agents, I have a meeting to attend to, and I believe that there is someone here to see you, and I do not want to hear anything coming from your mouth, Barton." Fury opened the door, and with a swish of his coat, he was gone.

There was another man standing in the doorway now; a man that neither Agent has seen in over a year.

He had a tan and a weariness that was utterly uncharacteristic, but there was no doubt that it was Phil Coulson.

For several moments all three just stared at each other; two agents in shock and one handler with a hopeful glint in his eyes. Clint's expression hardened suddenly and he rushed from the room, refusing to even look in Coulson's eyes. Natasha remained in the room, gathering her scattered thoughts.

For a year and a half, she believed that one of the few people she first trusted at SHIELD was dead. For a year and a half, she had helped her best friend come to terms with the death of someone he considered a brother. Natasha was shocked, surprised, angry, _absolutely pissed_, tired, and relieved all in the same breath.

She moved forward and in a rare showing of emotion, Natasha pulled Phil Coulson into one of the most emotional hugs the man has ever received.

He seemed surprised at first, and just noticeably flinched, more than likely expecting to be hit or snubbed like what Clint did. Then he relaxed into the hug, bringing his arms around Natasha and just reveling in the feeling that she didn't hate him.

"Phil I-" Natasha was trying to hold the tears that were stinging her eyes back.

"It's alright, Natasha, just _shhh_…" Coulson told her, cutting off anything she could have said in the moment.

They were quiet for a while after that, just standing and letting it all sink in. He was alive, Phil was alive.

They broke away after a few minutes and sat down in the chairs by Fury's obsessively neat desk; although everyone suspected that Hill might have had a part in that.

"How mad is he?" Phil asked with an ashamed duck of his head.

"I don't think he's mad, just conflicted. He came to terms with what he'd thought had happened about 5 months ago. That road was tough for him, Phil; you had to have known that your death was going to be harder than tough on him. He didn't eat, he didn't sleep, for four months he rivaled and beat Stark in drinking problems, it was horrible. I helped him the best I could, but nothing was enough until he shut it all down and locked it away. He's been a walking time bomb, Phil." Natasha told him, wondering where said man was now, but having a few ideas.

Coulson just sighed and ran a hand down his now exhausted looking face. "And you?" He asked, hoping she wouldn't try to hide how she dealt with everything.

"I didn't."

Coulson called her on what he knew to be a lie. "Bullshit, Natasha."

"No it's not! I couldn't deal with my own shit, not when Clint was spiraling farther into himself. I just couldn't, Coulson." Her voice broke at the end and Coulson really grasped what hell his two best agents have been through in the last year.

"Well we're going to deal with it now, alright?"

Natasha nodded.

* * *

Clint Barton was currently caught between beating the shit out of a punching bag in his private gym and drinking his brains out in his private gym.

It was like Coulson had died all over again. How could the man who pulled him from the shits of contract assassinations, the man who became a brother and a father to him in the same breath not find a way to tell him that he was still alive?

"Clint." It was Natasha. She'd found him fairly quickly, not that he should be surprised. He expected nothing less from her.

"You done talking to the bastard?" He was _so_ drunk, and it had only taken 2 bottles of Stark's finest vodka to do it this time. Maybe his body wanted to be drunk and then he wouldn't have to feel anything.

Clint felt a pair of familiar, warm hands pull the bottle out of his hands and push him to sit down.

"Don't blame Coulson, it was Fury who wouldn't let him contact us, I hacked into the database and found their communications, not only was it for his safety while recovering, but Fury honest to God cut him off from any outside world contact." She told Clint in a soothing tone.

Clint began to fall sideways as he spoke again, "Doesn't matter. He's still a little bastard."

"I don't disagree with you there, but you need to sober up." She told him while quickly and effectively trying his hands behind his back in a complex series of knots that he would have no trouble getting out of sober. "Coulson's meeting with the team tomorrow, but until then, they don't get a word of this."

With that, she left the gym.

* * *

The next day, the team was in an uproar over Coulson. Fury had told the team a less classified version of what he told Clint and Natasha, and then Coulson just popped out of the elevator.

So _not_ the way to break the news to that group. While Bruce was relatively calm about the whole thing, Tony went and started running his mouth at Fury, almost earning himself punch from the irritated director. Steve was pissed, but expressed himself in a more respectful way than Tony had, yet still questioned everything until he got answers. Thor grabbed Phil and pulled him into a giant bear hug that has ceased to end, much to the team's dismay.

Of course when Stark saw that Clint and Natasha didn't have the same reactions, he went off again about how "not cool their super secret spy stuff was" and how "there should be no secrets kept from the owner of the 'goddamn tower'". The spies just rolled their eyes, knowing that Tony would get over it.

Clint still hadn't spoken to Phil, and hadn't seen him since the meeting yesterday, but it didn't hurt as much to see him as it first had. He planned on talking to him; Clint just didn't know what to say.

After a while spent mingling with their newly returned handler, the team filtered off to their respective areas in the tower while Clint stayed and had a stare down with his resurrected handler. Even Natasha had left after saying goodbye to Coulson, wanting to give He and Clint some alone time.

"Clint." The archer needed no more invitation. He was across the room in all of two strides, pulling one of the most important people in his life into the manliest bear hug SHIELD had ever seen.

After a year and a half, Clint finally let everything out, and the tears that he's held back for so long began falling.

They stayed up almost the whole night talking about everything and nothing, from Coulson's time in Tahiti to a mission that the Avengers had 8 months after the battle of New York.

Around 2 am, Coulson had asked about him and Natasha. "So are you guys together now? Or am I reading that wrong?" He saw Clint's eyes fall.

"You know I waited for her Coulson, I waited for so long and she never wanted any part of anything other than partners and friends…." He trailed off at the end and didn't bring his eyes to meet Coulson's after he was done.

"What did you do Clint?" Coulson could tell something happened other than a collective denial of feelings between the two assassins.

"I almost had her, Phil, I almost did, and then I opted out of telling her and she was gone on a mission for four months. I can't spend my life wanting someone who doesn't want me." Coulson just sighed and Clint took that as a sign to go on.

"I met someone while she was away, her name's Angelina, and she's absolutely gorgeous, but she isn't Nat. I realized that the minute the two met, that she just could never be the same as Tash."

Coulson was growing more and more frustrated with Clint by the minute. "Then _why the hell_ haven't you done what you know you've wanted to since then?"

"She's screwing Banner."

Phil just looked at the archer skeptically, not convinced that it would be Banner whom Natasha chose to get in bed with. "She told you?" In response, Clint just showed Phil the footage from the lab, and the beginning of the gym. He almost got away without showing Phil past the 'good morning kiss', but nothing slips past that man.

After he saw everything, Phil got red faced and left the room for a few minutes and came back taking deep breaths. "What _the fuck_ did I just watch?" Irritated with both of his Agents, Coulson could only shake his head at their utter stupidity.

"Were Romanoff's injuries reported to SHIELD?"

Clint honestly didn't know. Since it happened, they've hardly spoken to each other. They haven't even tried to spar with each other either. Clint focused on individual workouts while Natasha sparred with Steve or Thor. "I don't know, Coulson, and I don't expect her to tell me either." There was guilt in his voice. Lots of unresolved guilt. He knew that she would probably have faint scars from the incident, and he's so angry that it was his fault.

"Clint, look at me." When the archer looked up, Coulson continued. "You haven't lost her yet, what makes you think she cares more for Bruce than for you?"

"And what if she does? Angelina is safe; there could be some semblance of a normal relationship with her. I also wouldn't have to lose my best friend if something happens. There's no risk." Clint placed both his hands on the table in a defensive manner.

Coulson decided he was done with the conversation if Clint was going to continue down his current mindset. Coulson got up and headed for the elevator. Before the doors closed, he turned towards Clint and spoke. "You've never been one for a risk-free life, and if you don't do something, you'll lose her anyways, relationship or not."

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**Wow...well I hope you all enjoy Coulson/assassin feels. We have to remember that aside from Clint, Coulson was the first person she trusted at SHIELD and he's pulled their asses out of the fire more than anyone would like to count.**

**What do you think Clint's going to do? Natasha? Bruce? TONY?**

**Btw, if you have a Tumblr, you should find a way to give me your url, then we can be Tumblr buds.**

**Please R&R, thanks!**


End file.
